Del Casher, guitarist who invented the wah-wah pedal and played with Elvis, dies at 88

Del Casher, the session guitarist who accidentally invented the wah-wah pedal and played alongside Elvis Presley on film, died on October 1 after a year-long battle with cancer. He was 88.

His death was confirmed through a GoFundMe page started by Al Burg, a neighbor and friend of more than 40 years, to support Casher's widow, Eiko, now 89, who faces what the fundraiser describes as 'serious financial distress.' As of the time of reporting, the campaign had raised 14 percent of its $14,000 goal.

Over the last year, Del battled cancer and passed away on October 1st.— Al Burg, friend and neighbor

Casher invented the wah-wah pedal in 1966 while consulting for Thomas Organ, the U.S. partner of British amp maker Vox, according to The Daily Beast. The foot-controlled device transforms a guitar's sound by sweeping a filter across different frequencies as the player's foot moves it up and down — and its origin was accidental. According to Rolling Stone, as cited by American Songwriter, Casher had set out in the early 1960s simply to make his electric guitar sound like a trumpet.

The pedal's rise to ubiquity came when Frank Zappa gifted one to Jimi Hendrix, who used it on his 1968 album Electric Ladyland, per American Songwriter. Eric Clapton, Jimmy Page, Tony Iommi, and David Gilmour all became devotees. Beyond the wah-wah, Casher also created the Ecco-Fonic and the Fender Electronic Echo Chamber over the course of his career.

As a session musician, Casher was hired by Paramount Pictures in 1964 to appear in the Elvis Presley film Roustabout. He also played guitar with Jerry Lewis in The Patsy, and later worked with Frank Zappa's Mothers of Invention and Frank Sinatra, according to The Daily Beast. In 1985, his guitar work appeared in John Williams' 'The Mission,' the NBC Nightly News theme — reported by the Daily Mail, via The Daily Beast, to be the longest-running TV news theme in history.

Casher recalled in an interview with ClassicBands.com that meeting Elvis on set was not what he expected. He had long suspected Presley was not a genuine guitarist — a suspicion Elvis himself, Casher said, freely acknowledged.

When I heard Elvis playing, I knew he was a fake guitar player... Of course, I came to find out he totally admits that.— Del Casher, guitarist and inventor

What Casher did not expect was Presley's reaction to watching him play. As Casher told ClassicBands.com, Elvis lingered and approached him quietly on set.

He came slowly up to me and said very politely, 'Excuse me, I don't mean to interrupt you, but may I say something?... Well, I've been listening to you play guitar and I just want you to know that I'd give everything if I could play guitar like you.'— Del Casher, recounting Elvis Presley's words

Despite Presley personally inviting Casher to play future gigs, Casher turned him down, according to The Daily Beast.

The financial circumstances surrounding Casher's death underscore a difficult final chapter. According to the GoFundMe, the COVID-19 pandemic devastated his sound studio business and forced him to sell valuable guitars and equipment to survive. The couple also took out a reverse mortgage on their home; with the home's value having since decreased, the loan balance now represents more than 70 percent of its current value. Eiko, who suffers from severe hearing loss and has been hospitalized for dizzy spells, is unable to drive and can no longer safely care for herself. After selling the house and settling the reverse mortgage, capital gains, and other taxes, she would be left with virtually nothing, the fundraiser states.

Eiko is now facing overwhelming financial and personal challenges at a time when she should be surrounded by peace, care, and stability.— Al Burg, GoFundMe organizer

No details about the location of Casher's death have been released. The GoFundMe remains active.

Why it matters — Casher's wah-wah pedal became one of the most widely used effects in rock history, shaping the sound of Hendrix, Clapton, Page, and generations of guitarists — making his death a significant moment for anyone who has ever heard an electric guitar.

Reported by americansongwriter.com, wideopencountry.com, thedailybeast.com, pennlive.com